Rejected by My Alpha Stepbrother

Chapter Two

By noon, the executive members of Ravencrest Global were gathered in the boardroom.

Dimitri sat at the head—CEO and Alpha-in-waiting.

Edmund Bancroft sat to his right.

He was the pack’s Beta, Uncle Asher’s best friend, and a gift from the Moon Goddess to me, because he’d ensured I had all the resources I needed to thrive in high school and college.

He was also the one who secured my internship at Ravencrest Global—and the only person who didn’t look at me like I was the epitome of hatred.

Maia was there too, because she held shares in the company and would never miss an opportunity to watch me crumble.

Other pack members filled the remaining seats, all watching me with varying degrees of hostility.

And finally, Marcus Chen, who’d made the impossible choice this morning:

He’d assigned me, an intern, to lead the full due-diligence report for the Castellanos acquisition in Texas.

A report that would determine whether the company moved forward with a deal worth tens of millions—work normally reserved for senior analysts.

And he’d given me two weeks.

It was a setup.

I knew it.

Marcus never forgave me for pointing out an error in one of his reports during a partner review, even though I’d meant it as a way to help, not embarrass him.

Since then, he’d made it his mission to prove I was unworthy of the position I was “handed.”

The Castellanos deal was just another setup to watch me crash and burn so spectacularly that even Edmund couldn’t save me.

And Dimitri would see.

Dimitri would witness my failure and confirm what everyone already believed:

That I was dead weight.

A charity case who didn’t belong.

I had two choices.

Prove them wrong.

Or prove them right.

With unsteady hands, I set up my laptop and the projector.

Every sleepless night and sacrificed weekend had led to this moment—countless hours dissecting financial records and running scenarios until the numbers became as familiar as my own reflection.

“Good afternoon, everyone.”

My voice was steadier than I felt.

“I’m here to present the revised terms of the Castellanos merger.”

I watched their expressions shift as I laid out my findings—the hidden debts buried in their books, the toxic assets we would have absorbed, the restructured terms that would protect Ravencrest Global while still offering the Castellanos a lifeline.

My projections showed how my version would save the company millions.

When I finished, silence hung in the air.

Oh God.

Had I miscalculated?

Missed something obvious?

My palms were sweating, my heart hammering so loud I was certain everyone could hear it.

I forced a breath and steadied myself with the thought of Mama’s voice, soft and fierce on a night that she tucked me in after a rough school day when kids mocked me for having no dad.

“You’re tougher than they know, baby girl. They’ll try to shrink you, but you keep growing.”

I wasn’t that scared kid anymore.

I had grown.

And I had just proved it.

Dimitri leaned forward, his dark eyes locked on mine.

Not impressed.

Not pleased.

Just intense, calculating.

“You’re saying the original deal would have cost us eight million in the first quarter alone?”

“Yes, sir.”

My voice didn’t waver.

“I have the documentation if you’d like to review—”

“That won’t be necessary, Ms. Garrett.”

He cut me off smoothly.

“And who was it that brought the Castellanos deal to Ravencrest?”

Marcus shifted in his seat.

“I-it was me, sir.”

Dimitri’s gaze swung to him like a weapon.

“And was it also you who thought it was a smart idea to give this deal to an intern?”

Marcus’s head snapped up, immediately defensive.

“She said she could do it, sir. She said she wanted—”

“I don’t care what she said.”

Dimitri’s voice cut through the room like a blade, and a hushed silence fell.

“You’re the head of an important department in this company, and you’ve just proven you’re not worth that position.

Or any position, for that matter, at Ravencrest Global.”

Marcus looked like he wanted to disappear.

He was practically shaking.

“I’m sorry, sir. It won’t happen again.”

“No, it won’t.”

Dimitri leaned back in his chair.

“Because this is the last time you’ll ever set foot in Ravencrest Global.

Clear out your office in the next five minutes, or I’ll have security drag you out.

I’m sure you wouldn’t want that.”

Marcus looked stricken, but he knew better than to beg.

Dejected, he grabbed his laptop and walked out of the conference room—but not before shooting me a look filled with pure venom.

The door clicked shut behind him, and suddenly I couldn’t breathe.

I’d just gotten a man fired.

A senior executive.

The other department heads were staring at me with naked hostility.

I’d just added to my long list of people who hated me.

“Ms. Garrett?”

Dimitri’s voice pulled me from my spiraling thoughts.

His expression was neutral, but there was something in his eyes—something that wasn’t quite a smile but felt like approval.

“Excellent work. Your meticulous attention is exactly what this company needs.”

He paused.

“Starting today, you’ll be my Executive Assistant.

You’ll review all documents and deals to spot any… inconsistencies.”

“What?”

Maia shot to her feet, her face flushed with fury.

“That position is reserved for people who are worth it! She—”

Her eyes burned with anger and disgust as they landed on me.

“She deserves nothing.”

My chest tightened, waiting for Dimitri to cave.

To take back the promotion.

To put me back in my place.

Instead, Dimitri turned to face her, his expression carved from stone.

“It’s my company, Mother. Let me run it.”

Something flickered in my chest.

It was hope.

Dangerous and fragile.

Then his gaze landed on me, and whatever warmth I’d imagined vanished.

“Besides, we’ve invested significantly in Isabella’s education and position.

It’s time she started repaying that investment.

This role will allow her to do exactly that.”

The hope died as quickly as it had sparked.

Investment.

Repayment.

Debt.

Not recognition.

Not merit.

Just another reminder that I owed them everything, that I was here on borrowed time and borrowed grace.

I nodded, throat tight, and forced the words out.

“Thank you for the opportunity, Mr. Ravencrest.”

My wolf whimpered somewhere deep inside me, small and broken.

There was no fierceness in her, only the dull ache of surrender.

One day, I told myself as he stood and buttoned his suit jacket with practiced ease.

One day I’ll be free of this place.

One day I won’t owe anyone anything.

“Meeting dismissed.”

Dimitri said and walked out without looking back.

✦ ✦ ✦

The weeks that followed were a study in torture.

Dimitri was demanding, perfectionistic, with expectations that bordered on impossible.

But he was also brilliant, fair, and when I succeeded—which I made damn sure I did—he acknowledged it.

“Good work.”

Those two words would send warmth through my chest that had no business being there.

Once, when a senior executive made a snide comment about my age during a meeting, Dimitri’s eyes had gone cold as winter.

“Ms. Garrett’s analysis has saved this company more money in three weeks than your entire department managed last quarter, Patterson.

I suggest you focus on your own performance.”

The man had practically shrunk in his seat.

And I—Goddess help me—I’d fallen a little bit in love with Dimitri Ravencrest right then and there.

Not the stupid childhood crush I’d had at thirteen when I’d first seen him.

This was something deeper.

Something dangerous.

Every day I spent in his office, it grew.

I watched him lead with strength and intelligence, saw the way he treated his people with respect, caught those rare moments when his mask slipped, and glimpsed the man beneath the Alpha.

It was killing me.

Because I knew it was impossible.

I knew he saw me as nothing more than an obligation.

His father’s dying wish.

I knew that even if, by some miracle, he could feel something for someone like me, it would never happen.

Not when he’d been surrounded by beautiful socialites and debutantes his entire life.

Plus, his father had abandoned him for my mother.

Because of my mother, he didn’t get to grow up with his father.

And just like everyone else, he hated me for it.

Maybe even more.

We were stepsiblings, if only on paper.

The pack would never accept me.

And if Maia ever found out, she’d burn my entire world to the ground.

So, I kept my feelings buried, invisible like my pain, and pretended my heart didn’t race every time he said my name.

I blinked at the spreadsheet glowing on my screen, my fingers frozen above the keyboard.

For the third time tonight, I had to remind myself to focus.

Finish the client email, Isabella.

Don’t think about him.

The office was silent now.

Everyone had gone home.

Only the hum of the computers and the faint buzz of the city below kept me company.

Then I noticed it.

His light was still on.

I stood and moved toward his office.

After a knock and the faint permission to come in, I opened the door.

“Sir,” I called softly, peeking inside. “Do you need anything? Maybe coffee?”

He looked up from his desk and saw me.

For a moment, he simply studied me.

Then, in a voice low and unreadable, he said:

“Come here, Isabella. Come closer.”

I moved to stand beside his chair, my heels clicking against the hardwood floor.

“This clause here,” he said, pointing to a section of the contract displayed on his monitor. “What’s your read?”

I couldn’t see clearly because I’d left my glasses on my desk, so I leaned over his shoulder to look.

His scent wrapped around me like a claim, scattering my thoughts.

He smelled faintly of scotch and something masculine.

But beneath the physical scent, my wolf recognized something deeper.

A scent that made every instinct inside me growl mine.

Something that called to his wolf.

Something I didn’t quite understand.

Yet.

The warmth of it seeped into me, coaxing out a reaction I couldn’t hide.

My wolf stirred restlessly beneath my skin, and I had to silently reprimand her to stay still.

I tried to focus on the document in front of him, but all I could think about was how close I was.

I could feel his gaze burning into my skin.

I made the mistake of turning to look at him.

His dark brown eyes were searching mine in a way that made me feel exposed, sending a thrilled shiver racing through my inner wolf.

My breath hitched, and I immediately stood straight.

“I-I have to get my glasses, sir.”

I started to pull back, trying to put a safe distance between us, but his hand shot out, catching my wrist.

“Wait, Isabella.”

I froze, my pulse thundering.

Slowly, he stood.

His six-foot-five frame towered over me, filling the space between us.

His thumb brushed over my wrist as he looked at me with an intensity that made my knees weak.

“Do you do it on purpose?”

I blinked, trying to focus my scattered thoughts.

But I couldn’t breathe.

Couldn’t think.

“I—what?”

“Every day, you walk into my office in your prim little skirt, with your hair pulled back in that messy bun I now itch to let loose.”

His fingers moved from my wrist to my hair, finding the pin holding it in place and slowly pulling it out.

My long black hair fell around my face.

Gently, he tucked a strand behind my ear.

His gaze dropped to my chest, watching the heavy rise and fall of my breathing.

“And every day, Isabella…”

He bit his lip as though it physically hurt to say the next words.

“Every day I have to remind myself why I can’t touch you.”

“Why can’t you?”

The words slipped out in a whisper before I could stop them.

Raw.

Breathless.

His eyes darkened, but within that darkness, gold flickered.

“You know why.”

“Because I’m your stepsister?

Or because I’m the w***e’s daughter who’s not good enough for—”

He moved faster than I could track.

Suddenly, he was standing so close I had to tilt my head back to meet his eyes.

His hands framed my face, gentle despite the tension evident in the way his jaw flexed.

“Don’t,” he growled.

“Don’t ever call yourself that.”

“It’s what everyone thinks.”

“I don’t care what everyone thinks.”

His forehead dropped against mine, and I felt him shudder.

“God help me, Isabella, I don’t care about anything other than what you taste like.

Other than hearing you call me by my first name and not ‘sir’ or ‘Mr. Ravencrest.’”

The intention was clear in his eyes.

Clear in the way the gold in them seemed to expand as if his wolf stirred restlessly within him.

Clear in the way his gaze dropped to my lips and stayed there.

I let my eyes flutter closed as his head lowered.

I could taste his breath.

Feel the heat radiating from his body.

Feel the desperate desire to have him touch me the way I wanted him to.

His lips were barely a breath from mine when he suddenly jerked away like I’d burned him.

He stumbled back against his desk, his chest heaving.

I opened my eyes to find him staring at me the same way he had since I was thirteen.

The gold in his eyes was gone.

Replaced by its usual dark brown.

All traces of need and desire had disappeared, replaced by cold distance.

“Go home, Isabella.”

His voice was hoarse.

When I didn’t move, frozen in shock, he growled:

“Now!”

I stumbled out of his office, my heart pounding in my chest, and didn’t stop running until I reached the elevator.

My reflection in the polished doors showed a woman I barely recognized.

Hair wild.

Lips parted.

Eyes too bright.

What the hell had I almost done?

What the hell had we almost done?

Dimitri and I?

No.

It couldn’t be.

I touched my lips, still tingling from the promise of a kiss that never came, and felt something unfurl inside my chest.

This couldn’t happen.

We were stepsiblings.

He was about to become Alpha.

He was only being kind to me because of the promise he made to his father.

That was what I told myself.

But God help me…

I wanted him anyway.

And from the look in his eyes before he pulled away…

He wanted me too.